Mar 1819
Tuesday 2
At home. Heard from Miss James--wrote to Mary Webb & Pen Valpy. Sent off my letter to Sir W. E. & finished a letter to
Miss James.
Wednesday 3
At home. Sent off my letter to
Miss James--went Firtopping--read the Monthly
Magazine, & Anecdotes of
distinguished persons.
Thursday 4
Friday 5
At home--read Anecdotes of distinguished persons. Went
violetting--found none--then went Fir topping with the pretty pet Miranda.
Saturday 6
Michael Angelo
Buonarrotti, 1474.
Sunday 7
Went to Farley Hill--heard Mr. Dickinson's Italian Translations--read Burdon's Materials
for thinking--a very pleasant day.
Monday 8
At Farley Hill--Mr. Johnson & Mr. Northmore came to dinner--a delightful
day-- Mr. Johnson talked to me very much
indeed.
Tuesday 9
At Farley Hill--the Miss Broughtons called--nobody dined but
ourselves--in the Evening we had the 4th book of
Virgil translated by Mr. D.
Wednesday 10
At Farley Hill--dear Drum came for me & dined as did Dr. Bailley--we came back in the Evening--a
most delightfully pleasant day.
Torquato Tasso, 1544. Thursday 11
At home--went primrosing--saw Mr.
Dearesley--read Guy
Mannering--played
with the Pets--wrote to Mrs. Hofland.
Friday 12
Went to Wokingham--met the
Whites & Tuppens& a large
party--Drum went out coursing with
them--I
staid
stayed
with Mary--wrote a note to
Mrs. Hayward & Miss Wheeler--came home at night. Stupid day.
Saturday 13
At home--received a very kind
letter from Miss Nooth--wrote to her--read Marriage--liked it very much--made me laugh.
Sunday 14
At home--went violetting--found none--Mr.
Dearesley called--read Marriage--& George
Mathew's Narrative--wrote
to Miss James.
Monday 15
Tuesday 16
Wednesday 17
At home--heard from Mrs. Hofland--Miss
Webb & Miss Wheeler
came to spend the day--went primrosing with
them--very pleasant day indeed.
Thursday 18
At home--went violetting in Mr. Pithers's fields--found none
except in the corner by the field
we sold to Mr. Dearesley. Wrote to
Mrs. Hofland.
Friday 19
At home--Mr. Haydon sent me the Examiner--went
violetting--did not find many--read Waverley--wrote to Mr.
Haydon.
Saturday 20
Sunday 21
At home--Went primrosing in Mr. Dearesley's Copse &
violetting in our own
fields.
Read a pretty Tale called Altham & his
Wife.
Monday 22
At home. Went violetting in Mr. Body's Fields &
our own with dear Granny & the Pets--did not find many. Read
the Tale of my Landlord.
Tuesday 23
Wrote to Miss Webb--read
Miss Jane Taylor's Display--& began Mr. Maturin's Women--Dear
Drum went to Town--At home all day.
Wednesday 24
At home--went violetting with Luce--found a
great many white & some beautiful blue violets
in a field near Pinge wood. The wood
sorrel not out yet.
Friday 26
At home--went violetting about our own
fields & Mr.
Body's
--Dear
Drum came home & brought me my superb red shawl
for a present--God bless him.
Saturday 27
Sunday 28 Mar
Raffaello Sanzio
D'Urbino, 1485.
Monday 29
At home--Went to Pinge wood with dear Drum, Luce & the pets--got a few wood
anemones & quantities of violets blue
& white--Wrote to Miss Brooke.
Gloss of Names Mentioned
Nature
fir
- species: Abies albayes: Abies albafalse: Abies alba
- genus: Abiesyes: Abiesfalse: Abies
- family: Pinaceaeyes: Pinaceaefalse: Pinaceae
- yes: European silver fir false: European silver fir
Evergreen coniferous trees found through much of North and Central America, Europe,
Asia, and North Africa. Unlike other conifers, firs bear erect cones that are raised
above the branches like candles; at maturity, the cones disintegrate to release winged
seeds. One of Mitford’s favorite foraging trees; she calls her collecting activity fir topping. Mitford would likely have been familiar with the European silver fir, which was
brought to England in the 17th century. Other types of firs such as Douglas firs and
noble firs, native to North America and used as Christmas trees, were introduced to
the UK in the nineteenth century.
violet
- genus: Violayes: Violafalse: Viola
- species: Viola rivinianayes: Viola rivinianafalse: Viola riviniana
- family: Violaceaeyes: Violaceaefalse: Violaceae
- yes: wood violet false: wood violet
- yes: Common dog-violet false: Common dog-violet
One of Mitford’s favorite flowers (as it was of many of her contemporaries). Native to Eurasia,
including the UK, it blooms from April to June in Berkshire. he terms viola and violet are used for small-flowered annuals or perennials, including the species. Mentioned
in the 1811 Poems as well as in Our Village. Mitford likely refers to wild forms of the Viola such as the common dog-violet. Field pansies
(Viola arvensis) are also native to the UK and are wild relatives of the multi-coloured,
large-flowered cultivars used as bedding plants. T
primrose
- genus: Primulayes: Primulafalse: Primula
- species: Primula vulgarisyes: Primula vulgarisfalse: Primula vulgaris
- family: Primulaceaeyes: Primulaceaefalse: Primulaceae
- yes: English primrose false: English primrose
- yes: common primrose false: common primrose
- yes: true primrose false: true primrose
One of Mitford’s favorite
flowers, can bloom with creamy yellow flowers from late December through May in Berkshire. Native to western and southern Europe. It is not to be confused with evening primrose
(Oenothera), a genus of 100+
species of herbaceous flowering plants native to the Americas. Mitford also mentions
the evening primroses, which have been cultivated in
Eurasia since the early seventeenth century and are now naturalized in some areas.
flower
Flowering plants, whether domesticated or wild.
wood sorrel
- genus: Oxalisyes: Oxalisfalse: Oxalis
- species: Oxalis acetosellayes: Oxalis acetosellafalse: Oxalis acetosella
- family: Oxalidaceaeyes: Oxalidaceaefalse: Oxalidaceae
Mitford likely refers to common wood sorrel, a member of the oxalis family, native
to the Northern Hemisphere, including the UK. It grows in mixed woodlands and is a
low-growing plant with heart-shaped trilobal leaves that bears white flowers in April
and May. The plant is not related to sorrel proper (Rumex acetosa), although the two
plants share an acidic taste that may have led to the similar name.
anemone
- genus: Anemoneyes: Anemonefalse: Anemone
- family: Ranunculaceaeyes: Ranunculaceaefalse: Ranunculaceae
Mitford may refer to the wood anemone (Anemone
nemorosa), an early-spring flowering plant, native to Europe. Common names include
wood anemone, windflower,
thimbleweed, and smell fox, an allusion to the musky smell of the leaves.
However, she may also refer to one of the cultivated varieties not native to
England, such as the poppy anemone (Anemone coronaria), which is native to the
Mediterranean region but was cultivated elsewhere in Europe beginning in the eighteenth
century. Unlike the wood anemone, the poppy anemone appears in bright shades of
red and blue.
Places
Publications
The Monthly Magazine
- Author: No author listed.
- Date:
No date listed.Monthly general-interest periodical. Published between 1796 and 1843. Founded by publisher Richard Philips and edited until 1811 by John Aikin.
Anecdotes of Distinguished Persons
- Author: William Seward
- Date:
4 vols. Full title: Anecdotes of Distinguished Persons: Chiefly of the Last and two preceding centuries. Adorned with sculptures. The second edition, with additions and corrections. Mitford called it very amusing. Source: Journal.
Italian Translations
- Author: #Dickinson_Charles
- Date:
Unpublished manuscript translations of works in Italian. Mitford reviewed the manuscript proofs.
Materials for Thinking
- Author: William Burdon
- Date:
The Aeneid
- Author:
- Date:
29 19
Latin epic poem written between 29 and 19 BC.
Guy Mannering
- Author: #Scott_Wal
- Date: No date listed.
Marriage: A Novel
- Author: Susan Ferrier
- Date:
1818 Saturday 13 March 1819.
Mitford records that she liked it very much; she also says that it made me laugh. In journal entry Saturday 13 March 1819. .
Account of the Extraordinary and Shocking Case of George Mathews
- Author: George Mathews James Harmer
- Date:
Full title: Account of the Extraordinary and Shocking Case of George Mathews: Who was Capitally Convicted at the Old Bailey in February, 1818 on a False Charge of Robbing His Master, Colonel Whaley, and Afterwards, Through the Benevolent Influence of Mr. Alderman Wood, the Hon. Mr. Bennett and Others, Pardoned by the Prince Regent, on the Clearest Proofs Being Given of His Innocence : Containing a Report of the Trial of Mathews, a Sketch of His Life, His Memorial to the Prince Regent, Colonel Whaley's Answer, Remarks Thereon, and Mr. Harmer's Letter, Explaining His Reasons for Assisting in the Development, and Obtaining a Pardon for Mathews.
The Wonders of the Little World
- Author: Nathaniel Wanley
- Date:
Full title: Wonders of the Little World; or, a General History of Man: displaying the various facultires, capacitities, powers and defects of the human body and mind. In many thousand most interesting relations of persons remarkable for bodily prfections or defects; Collected from the writings of the most approved historians, philosophers, and physicians, of all ages and countries. Forming a complete system of the mental and corporeal powers and defects of Human Nature. And intended to increase knowledge, to promote virtue, to discourage vice, and furnish topics for innocent and ingenious converssation. Mitford may have read the 2-volume expanded edition published in 1806, edited by William Johnston
The Examiner
- Author: No author listed.
- Date:
Weekly periodical launched by editor Leigh Hunt and his brother, the printer John Hunt. Mitford’s correspondence demonstrates that her household subscribed or regularly had access to The Examiner and The London Magazine.
Waverley; or ’Tis Sixty Years Since
- Author: #Scott_Wal
- Date: 1814
Altham and His Wife: A Domestic Tale
- Author:
- Date:
1810
1 vol. Mitford calls it a pretty tale. Source: Journal
- Author: No author listed.
- Date: No date listed.
Display
- Author:
- Date:
1815
Full title: Display: A Tale. For Young People.
Women: Or Pour et Contre. A Tale
- Author: #Maturin_Charles
- Date:
1818 Saturday 27 March
1819.
Mitford records that she don't like it much--too dismal.In Journal Saturday 27 March 1819. .
Persons, Personas, and Characters
Penelope Valpy French
- Valpy French Penelope Arabella
- Reading, Berkshire, England
- Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England
One of the daughters of Dr. Valpy by his second wife Mary Benwell. She was baptized on June 15, 1798
at St. Lawrence, Reading, Berkshire. Penelope Arabella was youngest Valpy child
to live to adulthood (a younger sister, Elizabeth Charlotte, died as an
infant). She married the Rev. Peter French on October 13, 1823 on the same day
that her sister Catherine married the Rev. Philip Filleul. The family lived in
Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, where Penelope was buried. They had five sons and
three daughters. Penelope and Peter’s first child, Thomas Valpy French became the first Anglican Bishop of Lahore (now northwestern India
and Pakistan).
Elizabeth James
- Elizabeth Mary James
- Miss James
- Bath, Somerset, England
- 3 Pembroke Villas, Richmond, Surrey, England
Close friend and correspondent of Mary Russell Mitford. She was the eldest daughter of Thomas Webb and Susanna Haycock. Her father
died in 1818 and her mother in 1835. After her parents’ deaths, she lived with
her two younger sisters, Emily and Susan, in Green Park Buildings, Bath,
Walcot, Somerset; High Street, Mortlake, Surrey; and 3 Pembroke Villas,
Richmond, Surrey. According to Coles,
referring to Mitford’s diary, letters were also addressed to her at Bellevue,
Lower Road, Richmond (Coles 26). She was buried at St. Mary Magdalene, Richmond,
Surrey. In the 1841 census, she is listed as living on independent means; in the 1851
census, as landholder; in the 1861 census, she as railway
shareholder.
Mary Webb
- Webb Mary Elizabeth
- Wokingham, Berkshire, England
Close friend and frequent correspondent of Mary Russell Mitford. Mary Webb was the daughter of James Webb. and Jane Elizabeth Ogbourn. Baptized on
April 15, 1796 in Wokingham, Berkshire. Sister of
Elizabeth (called Eliza) and Jane
Eleanor Webb and niece of the elder Mary Webb,
Aunt Mary. In
Needham’s papers, he
notes from the Berkshire Directorythat she lived on
Broad street, presumably in Wokingham, Berkshire. She
was the wife of Thomas Hawkins as she is referred to thus in probate
papers of 1858 regarding the wills of her sister Eliza Webb Walter and her
husband Henry Walter. Date of death unknown. Dates unknown.
Sir William Elford
- Elford William Sir baronet Recorder for Plymouth Recorder for Totnes Member of Parliament
- Kingsbridge, Devon, England
- Totnes, Devon, England
According to L’Estrange, Sir William was first a friend of
Mitford’s father, and
Mitford met him for the first time in the
spring of 1810 when he was a widower nearing the
age of 64. They carried on a lively correspondence until his death
in 1837.
Elford worked as a banker at Plymouth Bank (Elford, Tingcombe and Purchase)
in Plymouth, Devon, from its
founding in 1782. He was elected a member of
Parliament for Plymouth as a
supporter of the government and Tory William
Pitt, and served from 1796 to 1806. After his election defeat
in Plymouth in 1806, he was elected member of Parliament for Rye and served
from July 1807 until his resignation in July 1808. For his service in
Parliament as a supporter of Pitt, he was made a baronet in 1800. After his
son Jonathan came of age, he tried to
secure a stable government post for him but never succeeded. Mayor of
Plymouth in 1796 and Recorder for Plymouth from 1797 to 1833, he was also
Recorder for Totnes from 1832 to 1834. Sir William served as an officer in
the South Devon militia from 1788, eventually attaining the rank of
Lieutenant Colonel; the unit saw active service in Ireland during the Peninsular Wars. Sir
William was a talented amateur painter in oils and watercolors
who exhibited at the Royal Society from 1774 to 1837; he
exhibited still lifes and portraits but preferred landscapes. He was elected
to the Royal Society Academy in 1790. He was also a
talented amateur naturalist and was elected to the Royal Linnaean
Society in 1790; late in life, he published his findings on an
alternative to yeast.
He
married his first wife, Mary Davies
of Plympton, on January 20, 1776 and they had
one son, Jonathan, and two daughters,
Grace Chard and Elizabeth. After the death of his
first wife, he married Elizabeth Hall
Walrond, widow of Lieutenant-Colonel Maine Swete
Walrond of the Coldstream Guards.
His
only son Jonathan died in 1823, leaving him without an heir.
Miranda
A greyhound owned by Mitford,
described by her as blue all sprinkled with little white spots just like a
starry night in her 13 February 1819 letter to
Haydon.
Michelangelo
- Simoni Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti
- Caprese, Republic of Florence
- Rome, Papal States
Early-modern artist famous for sculptures, such as David and La Pieta, and frescoes, such as The Last Judgement and the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican.
Eliza Webb
- Webb Elizabeth Eliza
- Wokingham, Berkshire, England
- Sandgate, Kent, England
Elizabeth Webb, called Eliza, was a neighbor and friend of Mary Russell Mitford. Eliza Webb was the youngest daughter of James Webb and Jane Elizabeth
Ogbourn. She was baptized privately on March 3, 1797, and publicly on June 8, 1797 in
Wokingham, Berkshire. She is the sister of Mary Elizabeth and Jane Eleanor
Webb. In 1837 she married Henry Walters, Esq., in Wokingham, Berkshire. In
Needham’s papers, he
notes from the Berkshire Directorythat she lived on
Broad street, presumably in Wokingham. Source: See
Needham’s letter to Roberts on November
27, 1953
.
Charles Dickinson
- Dickinson Charles
- Mr. Dickinson
- Pickwick Lodge, Corsham, Wiltshire, England
- Farley Hill, near Swallowfield, Berkshire, England
Friend of the Mitford family. He was the son of Vikris Dickinson and Elizabeth Marchant. The Dickinson family
were Quakers who lived in the vicinity of Bristol, Gloucestershire. On August 3, 1807, he married Catherine Allingham at St Giles, South Mimms, Middlesex. They lived at Farley Hill, near Swallowfield,
Berkshire, where their daughter Frances was born, and where the Mitfords visited them.
Charles Dickinson owned a private press he employed to print literary works by his
friends (See letters to Elford from March 13, 1819 and June 21, 1820). He wrote and
published an epic poem in sixty-six cantos, The Travels of Cyllenius, in 1795. Upon his uncle's death, Charles Dickinson inherited the considerable wealth
his extended family had amassed in the West Indies.
William Burdon
- Burdon William
- Newcastle-upon-Tyne], England
- Cavendish Square, London, England
Wealthy mine owner and writer on political, moral, and literary subjects. Mitford
read his Materials for Thinking.
John Johnson
- Johnson John Mr.
- the Junius of Marlow
- Timothy Trueman
Friend who leaves his collection of political books to Northmore upon his death in 1821. Mitford helps his
sister, Miss Johnson, sort out the
books that are part of the estate, according to her letter of 1 July 1821. Lived at Seymour Court near Great Marlow before his death. Mitford reports meeting Mr. Johnson and Mr. Northmore for the first time in March 1819 in a letter to Elford. She describes him as one of those
delightful old men that render age so charming--mild playful kind &
wise--talking just as Isaac Walton would
have talked if we were to [have] gone out fishing with him.
The Gentleman’s
Magazine obituary lists his full name as John Johnson, esq. and gives his
date of death as 5 April 1821. See Obituary; with Anecdotes of Remarkable
Persons. Gentleman’s Magazine and Historical Review 91.1 (1821): [Died] April
5 . . . John Johnson, esq. of Seymour-court, near Great Marlow, a celebrated
member of the Hampden Club, and author of various political letters, &c.,
under the signature of Timothy Trueman (381). The Monthly Repository of
Theology and General Literature 16 (1821), lists the same death date and notes
that he was author of various political letters and essays in Mr. B. Flower’s
Political Register and other periodical works, under the signature of Timothy
Trueman
(314).
Thomas Northmore
- Northmore Thomas
- Cleve, Devonshire, England
- Furzebrook House, near Axminster, England
An acquaintance of Mary Russell Mitford, friend of John Johnson and co-founder with him of the Hampden Club. A Radical, Northmore ran unsuccessfully as Member of Parliament for Exeter and for
Barnstaple. In a letter to Haydon dated 9 February 1824
, Mitford refers to Northmore as a great Devonshire reformer, one of the bad epic poets and very pleasant men in which that country abounds (
Life of Mary Russell Mitford ed. L'Estrange Vol II, page 22). In an 1819 letter to Elford, Mitford gives this description of Northmore, and mentions
his authorship of an epic poem on George Washington: what a man! How loud & shrewd & full of himself & sharp all over from his eagle nose
to his pointed hook toe! What a perpetual sky rocket bouncing starting & flaming!
What a talker against time! Well might Mr. Hobhouse call him the gentleman who came all the way from Devonshire to tell us that he was a great
man at home. And he is a Poet too. Has written an Epic, which must have appeared incognito–for
I never remember to have heard it mentioned in my life. An Epic Poem about Washington
. Mitford may not have seen the poem, since it was published in Baltimore, MD. Northmore's
poem was entitled Washington; or Liberty Restored. A Poem in Ten Books.
Virgil
- Publius Vergilius Maro
- near Mantua, Cisalpine Gaul, Roman Republic
- Brindisium, Italy, Roman Republic
Roman poet, author of the Aeneid.
George Mitford
- George Mitford Esq.
- George Midford
- Hexham, Northumberland, England
- Three Mile Cross, Shinfield, Berkshire, England
Father of Mary Rusell Mitford, George Mitford was the son of Francis Midford, surgeon, and Jane Graham. The family name is sometimes recorded as Midford. Immediate family called him by nicknames including Drum, Tod, and Dodo. He was a member of a minor branch of the Mitfords of Mitford Castle in Northumberland.
Although later sources would suggest that he was a graduate of the University of Edinburgh
medical school, there is no evidence that he obtained a medical degree and he did
not generally refer to himself as Dr. Mitford, preferring to style himself Esq.. In 1784, he is listed in a Hampshire directory as surgeon (medicine) of Alresford. His father and grandfather worked as apothecary-surgeons and it seems likely that
he served a medical apprenticeship with family members.
He married Mary Russell on October 17, 1785 at New Alresford, Hampshire. On the marriage allegation papers, both gave their addresses as Old Alresford; they later came to live
at Broad Street in New Alresford. Their only child to live to adulthood,
Mary Russell Mitford, was born two years
later on December 16, 1787 at New
Alresford, Hampshire. He assisted Mitford's literary career by representing her interests in London and elsewhere with theater
owners and publishers. He was active in Whig politics and later served as a local
magistrate. He coursed greyhounds with his friend James Webb.
Dr. Bailley
- Bailley Dr.
Forename unknown. Dates unknown.
Tasso
- Tasso Torquato
- Sorrento, Kingdom of Naples
- Rome, Papal States
Poet and courtier from Naples. He was the author of the pastoral drama Aminta (1573) and
epic poem Gerusalemme Liberata (1574). Tasso’s life and work continued to be
the subject of much attention during Mitford’s lifetime.
Byron’s poem The Lament of
Tasso, written in Florence, appeared in
1817
; a translation of Gerusalemme Liberata
in Spenserian stanzas by Jeremiah Holmes
Wiffen appeared in 1821
;
Donizetti wrote an opera on the subject of Tasso in 1833
, incorporating some of the poet’s work into the libretto; and
Franz Liszt composed a symphonic poem, Tasso, Lamento e Trionfo in commemoration of the centenary of
Goethe’s birth in 1849
.
Mr. Dearesley
- Dearesley Mr.
Barbara Wreaks Hofland
- Hofland Wreaks Barbara
- Yorkshire, England
- Richmond-on-Thames
Novelist and writer of children’s books popular in England and
America, Barbara Hofland was a native of Sheffield,
Yorkshire, where she published poems from July 1794 in the local
newspaper, The Sheffield Iris. Her first
marriage to Thomas Bradshawe Hoole left her widowed and in
poverty, raising a son, Frederic, on her own, and she supported herself by
publishing poems and children’s books, and by running a girl’s school in
Harrogate. second marriage was to the artist
Thomas Christopher Hofland. (Source:
ODNB)
William Tuppen
- William Tuppen Captain
- Captain Tuppen
In Mitford's time, a captain retired from the Royal West regiment of the London militia.
Later became a magistrate and served as mayor of Reading.
Mrs. Hayward
- Hayward Mrs.
Likely the spouse of William Hayward the elder. Lived in Watlington and and mother of William Hayward the younger.
Kate Wheeler
- Miss Wheeler
Friend of Miss James.
Mitford refers to her as providing home
remedies and advice. See 29 January 1821 letter
to Mary Webb. More research
needed.
Charlotte Nooth
- Nooth Charlotte
- Ireland
A friend of Dr. Richard Valpy, who resided at Kew, Surrey, but often visited Paris. She wrote a poem to Dr.
Valpy and published volumes of poetry in 1815 & 1816, including a verse tragedy, as well as a novel, Eglantine, published by A.J. Valpy
George Mathews
- Mathews George
Wrongly convicted of robbery and later exonerated. Author, with attorney James Harmer of an account of his case, Account of the Extraordinary and Shocking Case of George Mathews, published on his behalf. Dates unknown.
Nathaniel Wanley
- Wanley Nathaniel
- Leicester, Leicestershire, England
- Coventry, West Midlands, England
Mitford read his The Wonders of the Little World.
Thomas Davies
- Davies Thomas Mr.
- Farmer Davies
Lived in Earley. Owned a neighboring meadow near Bertram House
Haydon Benjamin Robert
- Plymouth, England
- London
Benjamin Robert Haydon was a painter educated at the
Royal Academy, who was famous for contemporary,
historical, classical, biblical, and mythological scenes, though tormented by
financial difficulties and incarceration. He painted William Wordsworth's portrait in 1842 and
painted a cameo of Keats in his epic canvas
Christ's Entry into Jerusalem(1814-20). MRM was introduced to him at his London studio in the spring of
1817, and Sir William Elford was a
mutual friend, and Haydon’s own acquaintances included several prominent
British Romantic literary figures. He completed
The Raising of Lazarus in
1823
. He wrote a diary and an autobiography, both of
which were published only posthumously, and he committed suicide in 1846.
George Paston's
Little Memoirs of the Nineteenth
Century (1893) contends that Mitford was
asked to edit Haydon's memoir, but
declined.
Richard Body
- Body Richard
- Arborfield, Berkshire, England
- Wokingham, Berkshire, England
Mitford Russell Mary
- Mrs. Mitford
- Ashe, Hampshire, England
- Three Mile Cross, parish of Shinfield, Berkshire, England
Mary Russell was the youngest child of
the Rev. Dr. Richard Russell and
his second wife, Mary Dicker; she was born about 1750 in Ashe, Hampshire. (Her
birth date is as yet unverified; period sources indicate that she was ten years
older than her husband George, born in 1760.) Through the Russells, she was a
distant relation of the Dukes of Bedford (sixth creation, 1694). She had two
siblings, Charles William and Frances; both predeceased her and their parents,
which resulted in Mary Russell inheriting
her family’s entire estate upon her mother’s death in 1785. Her father’s rectory in Ashe was only a
short distance from Steventon, and so she was acquainted
with the young Jane Austen. She married
George Mitford or Midford on October 17, 1785 at New Alresford,
Hampshire. On the marriage allegation papers, both gave their
addresses as Old Alresford. Their only daughter,
Mary Russell Mitford, was born two years
later on December 16, 1787 at New
Alresford, Hampshire. Mary
Russell died on January 2, 1830 at
Three Mile Cross in the parish of Shinfield,
Berkshire. Her obituary in the 1830
New
Monthly Magazine gives New Year’s day as the date of her death.
Jane Taylor
- Taylor Jane
- London, London, England
- Ongar, Essex, England
Collaborator with her sister Ann and Adelaide O'Keeffe on poetry for children. Mitford read her novel Display.
Lucy Sweetser Hill
- Hill Sweatser Lucy
- Stratfield Saye, Berkshire, England
Beloved servant for twelve years in the Mitford
household who, on 7 August 1820 married
Charles Hill. She is the basis for
the title character in the Our Village story. Source:
Needham Papers,
Reading Central Library.
Raphael
- Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino
- Urbino, Marche, Italy
- Rome, Italy
Medieval Italian artist and architect.
Miss Brooke
- Brooke Miss
A correspondent of Mitford's, to whom she writes at 11 East Cliff, Brighton. William Colessuggests that this could be a summer address, and that she was a resident of Reading. She was courted by Dr. Valpy in October 1823. Forename unknown. Possibly the daughter of Mrs. Brooke and Mr. Brooke. Source: Letter from William Coles to Needham, 10 November 1957
,
Needham Papers,
.
Mossy
Mitford’s dog; He died on Saturday, August 21, 1819 at Bertram
House. Mossy was a nickname for Moss Trooper.